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Trump Plan: Ukraine Cedes Territory 11/21 06:22
President Donald Trump's plan for ending the war in Ukraine would cede land
to Russia and limit the size of Kyiv's military, according to a draft obtained
Thursday by The Associated Press.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump's plan for ending the war in
Ukraine would cede land to Russia and limit the size of Kyiv's military,
according to a draft obtained Thursday by The Associated Press.
The proposal, originating from negotiations between Washington and Moscow,
appeared decidedly favorable to Russia, which started the war nearly four years
ago by invading its neighbor. If past is prologue, it would seem untenable for
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who has opposed Trump's previous calls
for territorial concessions.
A side agreement aims to satisfy Ukrainian security concerns by saying a
future "significant, deliberate and sustained armed attack" by Russia would be
viewed as "threatening the peace and security of the transatlantic community."
The agreement, which was detailed by a senior U.S. official who was not
authorized to publicly discuss the matter, does not obligate the United States
or European allies to intervene on Ukraine's behalf, although it says they
would "determine the measures necessary to restore security."
Trump's push to end the war could drive a wedge between himself and European
leaders, who are likely to oppose any agreement that could be seen as rewarding
Russian President Vladimir Putin for his aggression, leaving him emboldened
rather than defeated.
For example, the proposal would not only bar Ukraine from joining NATO but
would also prevent the alliance's future expansion. Such a step would be a
significant victory for Moscow, which views NATO as a threat.
Putin would also gain ground he has been unable to win on the battlefield.
Under the draft, Moscow would hold all the eastern Donbas region, even though
approximately 14% still remains in Ukrainian hands. Ukraine's military,
currently at roughly 880,000 troops, would be reduced to 600,000.
The proposal opens the door to lifting sanctions on Russia and returning it
to what was formerly known as the Group of Eight, which includes many of the
world's biggest economies. Russia was suspended from the annual gathering in
2014 following its annexation of Crimea, a strategically important peninsula on
the northern coast of the Black Sea that is internationally recognized as part
of Ukraine.
Proposal increases pressure on Zelenskyy
The U.S. team began drawing up the plan soon after U.S. special envoy Steve
Witkoff held talks with Rustem Umerov, a top adviser to Zelenskyy, according to
a senior administration official who was not authorized to comment publicly and
spoke on the condition of anonymity. The official added that Umerov agreed to
the majority of the plan, after making several modifications, and then
presented it to Zelenskyy.
U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll was also in Kyiv on Thursday and discussed
the latest draft with Zelenskyy, according to a senior administration official.
Zelenskyy offered a measured statement on social media about it but did not
directly speak to the substance of the proposal.
"Our teams -- of Ukraine and the United States -- will work on the
provisions of the plan to end the war. We are ready for constructive, honest
and swift work," he wrote.
Meanwhile, Trump's special envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, has informed the
White House he'll leave his post in January, according to two senior
administration officials.
Kellogg was initially named special envoy for Ukraine and Russia during
Trump's presidential transition. But his role shrunk as Witkoff, a real estate
developer turned diplomat, emerged as the president's chief interlocutor with
Putin and his advisers.
Trump would oversee compliance with truce
Under the proposal, Russia would commit to making no future attacks,
something the White House views as a concession. In addition, $100 billion in
frozen Russian assets would be dedicated to rebuilding Ukraine.
However, handing over territory to Russia would be deeply unpopular in
Ukraine. It also would be illegal under Ukraine's constitution. Zelenskyy has
repeatedly ruled out such a possibility.
Russia would also be allowed to keep half of the power generated by Europe's
largest nuclear power plant, Zaporizhzhia, which it captured from Ukraine early
during the war.
The draft calls for a "Peace Council" that Trump will oversee. The council
is an idea that Trump snatched from his lengthy peace plan aimed at bringing
about a permanent end to war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
If either Ukraine or Russia violated the truce once enacted, it would face
sanctions.
U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., an Air Force veteran, rejected the emerging
plan. "Unacceptable," he posted on social media. "It is a 1938 Munich,"
referring to a diplomatic agreement aimed at securing peace with Nazi Germany
but widely viewed as paving the way for World War II.
European diplomats urge wider consultations
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Witkoff have been quietly working on the
peace plan for a month, receiving input from both Ukrainians and Russians on
terms that are acceptable to each side, White House press secretary Karoline
Leavitt said Thursday. Witkoff and Kirill Dmitriev, a close adviser to Putin,
have been key to drafting the proposal.
As reports about the draft emerged, blindsided European diplomats insisted
they and Ukraine must be consulted.
European leaders have already been alarmed this year by indications that
Trump's administration might be sidelining them and Zelenskyy in its push to
stop the fighting. Trump's at-times conciliatory approach to Putin has fueled
those concerns, but Trump adopted a tougher line last month when he announced
heavy sanctions on Russia's vital oil sector that come into force Friday.
"For any plan to work, it needs Ukrainians and Europeans on board," European
Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said at the start of a meeting in
Brussels of the 27-nation bloc's foreign ministers. She also suggested that the
draft would be too favorable toward Moscow.
"We haven't heard of any concessions on the Russian side," Kallas said.
German Foreign Minister Johannes Wadephul said he talked by phone Thursday
with Witkoff and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan to discuss "our various
current efforts to end Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine and thus
finally put an end to the immeasurable human suffering."
Ukraine's deputy U.N. Ambassador Khrystyna Hayovyshyn told the U.N. Security
Council that Kyiv has officially received Trump's draft peace plan and is ready
"to work constructively," but she stressed Ukraine's "red lines."
"There will never be any recognition, formal or otherwise, of Ukrainian
territory temporarily occupied by the Russian Federation as Russian," she said.
"Our land is not for sale."
"Ukraine will not accept any limits on its right to self-defense or on the
size and capabilities of our armed forces, nor will we tolerate any
infringement on our sovereignty, including our sovereign right to choose the
alliances we want to join," Hayovyshyn added.
Trump has long pushed for end to war
It was not clear whether European foreign ministers had seen the peace plan,
which was first reported by Axios.
Although they appeared caught by surprise, some elements of the plan were
not new. Trump said last month that the Donbas region should be "cut up,"
leaving most of it in Russian hands.
However, the administration's previous diplomatic efforts this year to stop
the fighting have so far come to nothing. A summit between Trump and Putin in
Alaska did not result in a breakthrough over the summer, and plans for them to
meet again in Budapest, Hungary, did not come to fruition.
Trump frequently complained that the negotiations involving Ukraine were
taking longer than other conflicts where he helped mediate.
"I thought that was going to be my easy one because I have a good
relationship with President Putin," he said this week. "But I'm a little
disappointed in President Putin right now."
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